The present invention relates to a device for connecting optical fibers to integrated-optics waveguides formed in a substrate.
With the advent of integrated-optics components such as, especially, couplers, multiplexers or switches, the problem arises of the connection of these components to optical fibers.
The main difficulty consists in conveniently positioning the substrate in which the waveguides are formed in relation to the fibers, the axes of the terminal faces of which have to coincide, with the greatest possible precision, with the axes of the waveguides of the substrate.
A process permitting the construction of such a connection is already known.
This process consists in constructing, within the thickness of the substrate and within the extension of each waveguide, V-shaped grooves in which the optical fibers are accommodated.
However, this process exhibits the significant disadvantage that the depth of the V grooves is lacking in precision; this may be reflected in a poor alignment of the axes of the fibers in relation to the axes of the waveguides.